Democracy in Egypt needs more than an election

4:25 AM,
Jul. 6, 2013

Written by

Dennis B. Ross

The term "Arab Spring" always was a misnomer. There was never going to be a rapid transformation from authoritarian rule to democracy in Middle Eastern countries. Genuine democracy requires not just elections; it requires a political culture of tolerance and respect for minority rights; institutions that provide for the rule of law; a readiness to accept the outcome of elections, even when you lose and a recognition that governance cannot favor only one group at the exclusion of everyone else.

The year 2011 was marked not by an Arab Spring but by an "awakening" in many of the countries of the ...